Close Quarters
by sunnywinterclouds
Summary: In which Annabeth and Rachel are roommates and Percy is the best kind of problem.


Before anybody else (Rachel) can tell you anything at all (blatant lies) about the events that transpired within the last couple of months, I just want to make one thing _very_ clear – I, Annabeth Chase, in no way, shape, or form, voluntarily agreed to fall in love with my roommate's boyfriend.

It was unintentional (honestly!), regret-filled(ish), and unwanted (you know, at first). Percy Jackson isn't even the kind of person you'd _want _to fall in love with. I mean, he's stubborn and annoying and irrational and obtuse and he doesn't think things _through_. I know people always use that phrase _opposites attract,_ but honestly, Percy and I start trying to strangle each other if we're left in a room too long together.

So, yes, as an intelligent college student with a great deal of reason and maturity, Percy is worthless and irritating and should really just go away before he gets his neck snapped by the intelligent college student in question.

The thing is, I would _really_ like to feel like that, like Percy is a nuisance and a bother and a waste of space, but I _don't._ I mean, I do, because he is, but I also find him endlessly endearing and selfless and funny and charming and –

Look, the point is, if this thing went to court, there would be _no_ evidence against me. Virtually nothing. They can't prove I fell in love with Percy Jackson at all. I mean, I'm not exactly very _affectionate._ They wouldn't have a case. And… and even they _did_ manage to get a bit of dirt on me, I'd get tried for manslaughter. Without a doubt. Except, you know, accidentally falling in love with someone, not accidentally killing them. Although, to be honest, accidently killing Percy isn't such a bad idea… you know, _accidentally…_

You know what? Forget this. I would be on the _prosecuting_ team. _Percy_ would be on trial. Right? For accounts of excessive handsomeness and sweetness and funniness and loyalty and humility and –

Yeah.

I need a lawyer.

… … …

_Hey, you've reached Rachel Dare! My cell phone must be turned off right now, and I only turn my cell phone off when I'm pissed at someone so if you _are_ that someone you'd better hang up because I'm not gonna talk to you until I've at least let out my frustration by painting a picture of you being stabbed by Corey Feldman which is not only therapeutic but actually kind of hilarious! If you're sure I'm not mad at you, which you shouldn't be, leave a message!_

I sighed and snapped my cell phone shut after reaching Rachel's voicemail for the eighth time in the last half hour. Usually she was back at our shared apartment by three every day, except now it was 4:30 and she _still_ wasn't here and of course today was maybe the only day in Annabeth-history in which I'd left my keys at home, so now I was stuck waiting in the lobby of our building until Rachel arrived to save me. To top off my day, the seats down there were _really_ uncomfortable.

I sighed and pulled my laptop out of my book bag. I figured I had three options – ask the building manager to unlock the door to my room, sit and ponder who it was that Rachel was mad at _this_ time, or catch up on my homework. Seeing as the manager hated _everyone _and was constantly doing random drug busts on our apartment, and that Rachel had some serious anger issues regarding… well, everyone, I decided finishing my power point project was pretty much the best way to go.

I had just finished checking my email (because, you know, it's not school without procrastination) when a guy settled down in the seat next to me. I spared him a quick glance, went back to my notes, then realized the guy was freaking gorgeous and did an indiscrete double take.

"Hey," he said, giving me a lopsided smile that kind of didn't make my heart jump at all. He had this… this warm voice, like even though I was a complete stranger he would love to strike up a conversation with me. And he looked like the kind of guy who could hold up a decent encounter, too, and not just talk about classes and backgrounds and _the weather._

I decided that my research project could wait. And, you know, let's be honest, I wasn't gonna get it done until four minutes before it was due anyway. Having a cute guy with artfully messy hair and the greenest eyes _ever_ was just an unusually decent excuse to slack off.

"So I just asked the guy behind the counter if he could please direct me to where the elevators are, which isn't the lobby for some bizarre reason, and he told me that I could ride to any floor I wanted and would still be trapped in hell as long as I still resided within the building. I was just wondering, is this normal behavior, and if so, is he _stable?"_

I laughed. Cute _and_ funny, although maybe that didn't count as humorous because there were times when I seriously suspected that Mr. Fairway had a serious medical condition.

"That's the manager. He's… well, he grows on you." Great, I'd only said two sentences to this guy and I was already lying.

"Like a leech?" he suggested, offering me another one of his crooked grins.

"Well, no. You can pry a leech off of you, eventually. Mr. Fairway will never go away."

He nodded thoughtfully. "So what you're saying is that I need a better metaphor."

I winced. "Um, actually, that's a simile. Because you said _like_ a leech, not just _a_ leech."

He groaned and threw his head back. "You sound like my second through twelfth grade English teachers. Ow, this chair is _really _hard." He rubbed the spot on his scalp that had been injured by the solidness of the terrible seats we resided in, ruffling his dark hair up even more in the process.

"They used to have a couch out here, but –"

"Mr. Manager thought it added a bit of happiness to this dark wasteland and had it burned to the ground?"

Dammit, I liked this guy. "Actually, someone drew all over it with marker and ripped up the cushions and it had to be removed."

"Marker? What, was Mr. Manager out of matches?"

"Mr. _Fairway._ And we have our suspicions."

He raised his eyebrows. "Oh?"

"Yeah. Like, I suspect my roommate. She's kind of… artsy. She probably thought she was sprucing it up."

He laughed (note crinkly eye corners) and stuck out his hand. "I'm Percy."

Percy. Huh. Not the first name I would have guessed for him, but… fitting. Somehow.

"Annabeth," I proclaimed as I shook his hand. It was warm and callused and his grim was firm but not suffocating. Great, he even did handshakes perfectly.

But… it was more than that. Like, a spark. A connection. I felt _something_. Love at first sight was a naïve, ridiculous belief, but love at first touch… I think I could go for that.

"Annabeth?" he asked, his eyes widening a fraction. "Annabeth Chase?"

Before I could accuse him of stalkery and creepiness (which I might not have because stalking is unnecessary when you have eyes like those), Rachel walked through the revolving doors and into the lobby.

"Percy!" she said, clearly taken aback but also pleased. "What are you doing here?"

"Do you forget _all_ of our conversations?" he asked, getting up from his rock-like chair and approaching her. "I mean, I'm okay with the little ones, but this one was kinda life-changing, so…"

Rachel's green eyes went huge, and then she slapped a hand to her forehead.

"_Oh!_ Oh right! I'm so sorry, I totally forgot it was today, I'm sorry, I'm so late, I'm – crap." She'd dropped the plastic bag of… _something_ that she was carrying onto the floor, and she cursed like a sailor as she stooped over to pick it up.

"No worries," Percy said, offering her a blinding grin as he knelt down beside her to help with her things. My heart sank a bit as I watched the way his hand brushed hers when he reached to grab the bag.

"Thanks. But really, I'm sorry, I hope you didn't wait too long."

"Hello?" I said, seeing as I'd been waiting about half an hour longer than Percy, but the both of them ignored me.

"Actually, just a few minutes. But it turns out your manager is evil and then I apparently struck up a conversation with your roommate."

Oh. So _that's_ how he knew my name. Rachel had told him. But, then, why hadn't I ever heard his name before?

I racked my brain. Hell, maybe I'd been told all about him. I had the tendency to tune out Rachel when she was talking.

Rachel laughed. "Yeah, probably should have warned you about Mr. Fairway. He's kind of eccentric."

Percy and I let out simultaneous huffs of laughter, and he turned his disarmingly attractive smile on me, which made me blush.

"Oh, Annabeth, I guess you've met my boyfriend, then, Percy."

"Oh," I said, then realized how stupid that sounded and added, "right," then realized how lame that sounded and added, "he seems nice."

Before I could tack on another ridiculous statement to my admittedly boring sentence, Percy interrupted with an affronted look.

"_Seems nice?_ Seriously? I put the charm on full blast and that's all I get? _Seems nice?_ Jeez, Rach, your roommate is hard to impress."

Rachel rolled her eyes. "The only things that impress Annabeth are fancy buildings with domey roofs or whatever."

I gritted my teeth. My one issue with Rachel was that she had _no respect_ for architecture, and also that she talked all the time and stayed up late painting weird things and apparently had a gorgeous boyfriend whom I'd developed a crush on within two minutes of meeting.

I absently wondered how serious their relationship was, and how devastated Rachel would be if they broke up_,_ but then I realized I was hands down the worst friend in the entire universe and attempted to join the conversation

"Hey, where were you?" I asked, hoping to change the subject (because there was no way I wasn't going to punch Rachel in the face if she had a super hot boyfriend _and_ started making fun of architecture) as the three of us walked towards the stairs and I pointedly ignored the two of them holding hands, "and why was your cell phone off?"

"Fight with my dad, to answer both questions," she said simply. I didn't press the matter, namely because I wasn't stupid, but also because I had a crap relationship with my parents, too, and was willing to respect Rachel's privacy in this one regard.

"Ah," I responded, and once again realized I had nothing to talk about. "So, um, Percy, what are you doing here?"

Percy raised his eyebrows at his… his _girlfriend._ "Seeing as you didn't even tell your roommate my _name_, I'm assuming she has no idea about the huge decision we've made together even though it dramatically alters her lifestyle?"

My heart sank. Crap. They were getting married, weren't they? I had the worst life _ever._

Then I realized exactly what had just gone through my thoughts, and felt like beating my head against the wall. I'd known this guy for exactly five minutes. I didn't even know his last _name_. I was just being stupid because I'd gotten some static electricity when we shook hands. I needed psychiatric help.

Currently, Rachel was blushing and fiddling with her strands of frizzy red hair – she promptly got her fingers hopelessly tangled within them, which made Percy snort before he reached over to help her.

"Well," she said, wincing as a few strands of her hair got torn, "I actually feel really dumb about not bringing this up before, because it's kind of a huge deal, but… d'you think you'd be okay with Percy moving in with us?"

What. The hell.

What.

_What._

"Because, the thing is, Percy's starting college! Isn't that great? That's great, right? _So _great." Rachel rambled when she was nervous. I was dead. "And, you know, I just thought it would be awesome if he could live with _us,_ because we're so close to campus and he can help us with the rent because we're always behind on it and he can share a room with me and do all the chores and –"

"Hey! I will _not –_"

"– it will be great! For all parties involved! I swear. He's not _too_ annoying, you know, most of the time, if you can tolerate him singing in the shower and –"

"Why didn't you tell me about this earlier? No, scratch that, _when_ did you guys come to this decision?" Without _me!_ Rachel was so getting stabbed by a marker pen in her sleep tonight.

Current future corpse bit her lip as I contemplated where I could hide the body. "Uhm… last month?"

I felt like fainting, except then I'd tumble down all the stairs we were currently climbing and who would give Rachel her just desserts if I bled out from a head injury? "Okay, then, back to the previous question."

"I… uh…" She grinned weakly. "It's… easier to… ask for forgiveness than permission?"

I stared at her.

"She forgot," Percy added dryly, rolling his eyes in my direction. God dammit, he was cute.

Bastard.

We'd finally reached Rachel and I's apartment, which apparently was now Percy's as well. Rachel fumbled with her key while I silently panicked about the small size of our apartment – it was hardly big enough to hold two people, much less three. There were two bedrooms, a small kitchen, a rec room where we ate and watched TV, and –

Crap.

Our apartment had _one bathroom_.

"I know what you're thinking," Rachel said suddenly, although I really didn't think she did because my mind was already running through fantasies of Percy naked, "but it's not gonna be a problem. I promise. This isn't permanent, not at all, just until Percy can find his own place. Right, hon?"

_Hon._ What a sickening term of endearment. Uncreative and overused and just… _argh._

"Of course," he said, giving me what he must have thought was a winning smile (it was). "I'll be out of here before you know it, and then you'll realize just how much you needed me and you'll pine away until I'm forced to come back."

"Right," I said flatly. He shot me a grin, and it occurred to me that he hadn't stopped smiling since the moment we met. How on _earth_ was I supposed to deal with him looking like… like _that_ every second of the day?

"Seriously. I'm not kidding here. I'm a great cook."

"He is," Rachel added. "If you can look past the fact that everything he makes is blue."

I wished I'd been drinking a soda when she said that, because then I could have spit it out on Percy's stupidly good-looking face. "_What?_"

"Don't ask," Rachel said, grimacing. "It's a bad habit."

"It is _not,_" he argued. "It's creative and wonderful and it makes things taste better."

"It's weird."

"You paint pictures of your enemies getting stabbed by 80s movie stars for _stress relief,_" Percy mentioned tonelessly, which made me laugh, which made him smile again, which made _my_ smile fade.

"See! You two are getting along already!" Rachel said, clapping her hands together as she set her bag down on the living room floor.

"Yup," Percy said, smirking at me. "We can bond over our intense first-hand knowledge of your crazy quirks, and maybe spend nights philosophically pondering the questions of the universe. The first one being, _was Rachel ever normal, and if so, what happened, and where did her sanity go?_"

Rachel threw a pillow from the couch at him, and I scrubbed a hand over my face. Nothing worse than being a third wheel, especially when the current couple in question is one that you want to rip apart with your teeth.

"Well," Percy announced as he headed off down the hallway. "On that friendly note, I'm gonna take a shower."

He peeled his shirt off on his way, and I got a brief glimpse of the tan skin of his back and the firmness of his shoulders before he disappeared into the bathroom.

I collapsed onto the couch. Yup. I was screwed.

This was going to be the worst semester _ever._

… … …

Two weeks later I was sitting on my bed with the door shut firmly, blasting Ed Sheeran from my speakers as I pretended to myself that I was finishing up my visual animation project. In truth, I was on Microsoft Word making a list of reasons why Percy Jackson (see, I'd learned his last name!) was an annoying douche bag that I had no business _whatsoever_ in crushing on. The list went as follows:

1. The most obvious; he's my roommate's boyfriend. And, despite her eccentric (and slightly psychotic) tendencies, Rachel is my best friend, and I'd hate myself if I ever betrayed her trust. _Plus,_ it's not like I have a shot with Percy when he's dating _Rachel._ She's all casually beautiful and artsy and easygoing and I'm… not.

2. He really is pretty damn irritating. He sings in the shower, and while he cooks, and while he does the chores that Rachel forces him to do. He's not even _good_. I mean, it's… _endearing,_ the way he just shouts out everything all off-key and mumbles through the lyrics he doesn't know and then dances around to the chorus, but his voice is pretty terrible. Plus, he's messy. He never hangs up his towel after he uses the bathroom and he splashes water all over the mirror and he leaves clothes on the floor and he never refills the ice tray in the freezer like we're all supposed to because the ice maker is broken.

3. He laughs at _everything_. I'm not even kidding. Him distracting me while I'm trying to do my homework? Highly amusing. Me throwing soap bubbles at him for said distracting? Ridiculously funny. Me slipping on the water that had gathered on the floor due to our resulting dish soap fight? _Hilarious._ And he doesn't know when not to laugh at his own jokes. I mean, sure, he's sarcastic and witty and goofy, but _really_. What a narcissist.

4. He's obviously a jerk. I mean, he was pretty much hitting on me when we first met, even though he had a girlfriend who lived in the building and could walk through the doors at any second. Although, to be honest, I'm not sure if this counts as a reason, because as far as I can tell, shameless flirting is just Percy's version of friendly. Seriously. He acts like that with _Mr. Fairway._ Either Percy has some really disturbing kinks that he's not telling me (or Rachel) about, or he's just a nice guy.

5. He, uh… he's really dumb? Yeah, he is. He's super obtuse and all of my intelligent statements go right over his head and he gives me this look like I've just dropped out of the sky because I have something smart to say. Of course, the aforementioned look is one where he scrunches up his eyebrows and peers up at the sky a little bit and does this funny thing with his mouth and I can't help but find it very difficult to get too annoyed with him when he does that, the asshole.

6. He… uh… he makes _blue food!_ Granted, it tastes amazing, but that can't be normal! Maybe he has a mental infliction and he'll have to go off and live in some sort of facility for crazy blue-food making people and I'll never have to see him or his stupid attractiveness again.

7. He… is… _taken._

That… was pretty much all I could come up with. It sounded like a lot more in my head, to be honest. I briefly contemplating adding that he was majoring in _marine biology _(which explained a lot because his head was full of seaweed), which shouldn't even be considered an area one could get a degree in because it was just so lame, but seeing as my major (architecture) was constantly being belittled by my roommate (for whom I was still having lingering irrational feelings of hatred towards), I decided to be polite and keep it off of my list.

I banged my head against the bed's headboard. I was being _ridiculous._ It's not like Percy was ever going to read my list, anyway, and if he _did_ I would die from embarrassment and maybe throw myself into the ocean that he loved so much just to get away from the constant, everlasting shame.

My dad always said I liked to be overdramatic. In this case, however, I honestly was doing no such thing.

Well, not really.

The thing was, living with Percy for two weeks had _gotten_ to me. When Rachel was out, and it was just the two of us lounging around the apartment, I could almost delude myself into thinking that we were a couple and we lived together and we were happy and that his constant jokes and laughter was him expressing his undying love for me.

And then, of course, I'd see the paintings Rachel had up all over the walls and would get snapped back into a harsh reality where I was pitifully single and had been since high school and Percy was dating a girl much more desirable than myself who also happened to be my best friend and that was pretty much the reason that I was currently locked up in my room with the music turned up so loud I was hoping it might drown out reality.

But, in all honesty, the main thing that was bothering me was _why._ I mean, sure, Percy was cute and funny and nice and all that, and if he was single I'd probably be totally interested in him, but I'd met lots of guys like that in the past and I hadn't fallen for any of _them_. And I was a_ very_ sensible person, the kind of person who didn't want to get involved in a love triangle in any way, shape, or form. The second I found out he was off the market, I should have gotten over him. I should have just _forgotten _about it.

And yet… there was something _about_ Percy. If I was someone else, someone less logical and academic and mature, I might say he was… well, my _soulmate._ Even though we fought all the time (or, I fought with him, Percy was too easygoing to have a real fight with anyone), and we were pretty much the exact opposites of each other, we _fit_.

Except, you know. Besides all the reasons I listed up there.

But, you know, platonic soulmates existed. And the fact remained that I needed to get over my silly teenage infatuation (because I _was_ only nineteen, still technically a teen).

I got this little bit of excitement in my stomach, like when the teacher assigned a really difficult piece of work and all the other students groaned but I got tingles of anticipation in my gut at the new challenge.

This was a _challenge._

I quickly brought up another Microsoft Word tab and did what I did best – create a pointless list that no one but me would ever see.

_Task 1: Avoid Percy at any and all possible times. Avoid participating in any activities _whatsoever_ with him. This includes, but is not limited to, watching TV with him, having any more unwarranted dish soap fights with him, and indiscreetly spying on him as he vacuums while singing Avril Lavigne's 'Sk8er Boi'._

_Task 2: Attempt to not be jealous of Rachel and Percy's admittedly adorable relationship. Honestly, the gushiest things they do are sneak attack hugs, cheek kisses, and her trying to paint pictures of him in dramatic poses but failing because has ADHD (just like me! soulmates, right? oh, sorry) and can't sit still for more than five minutes. None of these are really, _truly_ vomit-worthy, anyway._

_Task 3: If the previous task is successful, even try to be happy for Rachel. She seems to like Percy a lot, and he seems to like her a lot, and their relationship _works_ so you should be happy for them._

_Task 4: Yeah. Right. Just stick with task two, and don't impale Rachel on one of her stupid marker pens._

_Task 5: Don't fall in love with Percy Jackson._

_Task 6: You know. Any more than you already have._

… … …

With my new goals in mind, hanging out with Percy was suddenly much easier. I mean, due to Task 1, I tried to be M.I.A. every time he was around, but during the unavoidable instances in which I had to interact with him (hello, we lived together), I managed to not blush or trip over my words or act like a stupid preteen girl with a movie star crush.

The trick to this was to pretend like I was in a contest. Me against my hormones. Me against my feelings. Me against Percy fucking Jackson.

And I liked to win.

I wasn't competitive or anything, but if anyone beat me at anything, I'd go home and do it over and over until I was the master and no one could stand up to me and I could crush anyone who tried to challenge me.

So, yeah. The remnants of my crush on Percy had nearly completely evaporated. Or, you know, I was telling myself that.

"Hey, Annabeth! I'm heading out to lunch. You in?"

I hesitated, not sure exactly how to respond to Percy's offer, and if I should respond at all. I mean, on one hand, _Task 1. _Avoid Percy at any and all times. But on the other hand, I was totally over him, and hanging out with him in a completely nonromantic and friendly setting would be good for me. I mean, I'd have to get used to him eventually, and in all honesty, he was pretty fun to be with.

"Annaaabeeeeeth?"

I gritted my teeth as he dragged out my name. _So _annoying. No wonder it'd been so easy to get over him. "Yeah, sure. Let me get my keys."

I'd been very careful about leaving the apartment without my keys recently, a fact that highly amused my two roommates, but believe me, I'd learned my lesson.

"Where're we going?" I asked on our way out the door of the building. Hopefully it wasn't too far, because I'd much rather walk than take a taxi (pretty much the only two forms of transportation in New York City).

"You'll see," Percy said, giving me one of his trademark grins, which luckily didn't make my stomach flutter anymore (much).

"I don't get any say in this at all?"

"You're more than welcome to offer a suggestion."

"Will you take it into account?"

"Nope." He said this so cheerfully that I laughed. Percy was a fun person to have conversations with when I wasn't silently freaking out about everything about him.

"Good thing, too, because I was about to suggest seafood," I joked, just to see his expression. Something about Percy's intense love of marine animals made him incapable of eating fish or anything fish-related.

"Don't even," he warned, but he was smiling as he did so.

As it turned out, Percy had no idea where we were going, so we wandered around for a bit before we settled on a Chinese restaurant a few blocks away from our apartment.

"I love this place," he said, grinning, as we settled down in a booth. "It doesn't have stupid vague Chinese proverbs in the fortune cookies like everywhere else."

"Oh?"

"Yeah. Like, the one down the street is all _when life gives you lemons, make lemonade_ and _what you sow is what you reap_ and that crap, but this one is just like _you will win the lottery_ and _you will have eternal happiness_."

I quirked an eyebrow. "Interesting. And, out of curiosity, how many of these fortunes have come true? "

Percy sunk down in his seat and stuck his tongue out at me childishly. "None of them. _Yet._ But to be fair, the other ones aren't even _fortunes_! They're just philosophical statements that have no meaning at all."

"You _are_ aware that these things are constructed in a factory and have no impact whatsoever on our lives? _None _of them mean _anything._"

He frowned and picked up a straw to poke me with. "Must you ruin everything, oh-wise-one?"

"Yes."

He laughed and blew the wrapper off of the straw, which promptly hit me in the face, which just made him laugh harder. This probably would have started a long, painful, hundred-year war, except then a waitress approached us and took our orders and so Percy was spared (for now).

"So, Annabeth," he said, placing his elbows on the table and resting his chin in his hands. "Tell me about yourself."

I eyed him warily. "What about myself?"

He shrugged. "Anything."

I shifted, a bit uncomfortable. It wasn't like I didn't _trust _him – because I did, Percy was the kind of person you just couldn't suspect of anything other than true good-heartedness – but I honestly didn't like to talk about myself or my life or _anything_ regarding personal stuff.

Maybe he wasn't as dumb as he looked, because he seemed to sense this. "Tell you what, I'll tell you all about me, and then you'll tell me all about you."

"This ought to be good," I muttered, rolling my eyes, but I nodded in agreement anyway.

"Alright. So, my name is Percy Jackson," here I bit back a comment about how his name _should_ be Captain Obvious, "I'm twenty years old, and I've lived in New York City my entire life. I've spent the last two years doing odd jobs to save up for college, but now I think I've got enough to get started. I love the beach and the color blue. I'm a great surfer. My mom is my most favorite person in the entire universe. My proudest accomplishment in life is winning the sand castle building contest in Montauk three years in a row."

He leaned back in his seat and nodded, looking quite pleased with his list. I laughed.

"So. Mama's boy, beach bum, Yankee?"

He clapped his hand excitedly. "You've got me all figured out. Your turn."

I thought about that as the waitress came back with our drinks. Percy frowned at his Coke with ice, and somehow I knew it was because it wasn't blue.

"Okay, fine, but first you have to tell me what's up with the blue… everything."

He laughed. "You drive a hard bargain. Okay, so I used to have this stepdad, and him and my mom got into this fight over whether or not blue food existed. So then she started dying all of our food blue, just to prove a point. It kinda stuck with me." He shrugged happily.

"She sounds a lot like you," I pointed out, which made him smile even more.

"Thanks, Wise Girl. That's honestly the best compliment you could give me."

"_Wise Girl?_" I questioned, fighting back a smile. How creative was _he?_

"Of course," he said, giving me wide, innocent eyes. "Because, you know, you're always right about _everything._"

I threw a ketchup packet at him, which bounced off his forehead. He laughed again.

"So what about your stepdad?"

A bit of the light faded from his eyes. "Didn't work out. Got a new one, a way nicer one, who was also an English teacher at my high school. Only class I got an A in." He grinned for a second, then narrowed his eyes at me. "Hey, wait a minute. I thought we were supposed to be talking about _you_ now. You really know how to dodge the subject, don't you?"

"Of course. After all, I know _everything_."

He chuckled, then his smile faded to something gentler and a little more serious. "You don't have to talk about anything if you don't want to."

I shook my head. "No, it's not a problem. Erm, my name is Annabeth Chase, I'm from San Francisco –"

"I _knew_ you looked like a California girl! Except, you know. The gray eyes."

I rolled said gray eyes. "You wanna hear about me or not?"

"Sorry," he said, blushing. Embarrassment was a nice expression on him, not just because he pulled it off so well, but because he deserved a bit of it after all the times he'd made me feel mortified.

"So, I'm nineteen years old, I'm majoring in architecture –"

"Hadn't guessed," he drawled, probably referring to the constant sketches of buildings that were scattered all over the house. I glared at him for a second, and he put his hands up in a surrendering fashion.

"As I was _saying,_ I grew up with my dad and my stepmom and my two stepbrothers." I paused, which Percy seemed to take as an invitation to talk.

"Evil stepmom?"

I laughed. "No, normal stepmom. Not an English teacher, though."

"Bet you still got an A in the class."

I blushed. "Anyway, when I turned eighteen I moved over here to attend college. That's… pretty much it, to be honest."

He raised a disbelieving eyebrow. "Seriously? No mysterious past? No depressing back-story? No tales of how all the other kids hated you in high school because you were the smartest person there?"

"Actually, I was quite popular in high school. I'm great at making friends," I said, and he groaned.

"Of course you are. Tell me, is there anything you're not good at?"

I gave him a blank stare, and he shook his head in disbelief. "That's just wrong."

"Hey!" I said indignantly. "I'm sure _you_ weren't exactly a social outcast back in the day." There was no way a guy as hot as him had been neglected in high school.

He shrugged. "I was on the swim team."

Somehow, that didn't surprise me.

"Womanizer?"

He laughed. "I've had two girlfriends in my entire life."

I almost choked on my sparkling water. I mean, sure, I'd only dated one guy before, and it had only lasted two months and he'd turned out to be a total _jerk_, but I wasn't gorgeous and funny and athletic and easygoing.

"Seriously?"

"Yup. A girl named Calypso when I was 15, and Rachel ever since."

Just then, our food arrived, and the waitress stopped to flirt with Percy for a few moments (he looked at her like she had just dropped out of the sky) before sashaying off. Percy used a chopstick to spear a dumpling and then started shoveling food into his mouth.

I fumbled my plate of noodles (using my eating utensils _properly_) and asked, as casually as I could, "How long have you and Rachel been together, then?"

"Four years," he answered after swallowing, "but we've been best friends since forever."

Man, it sure was a good thing I'd gotten over him, because otherwise I would have been _crushed._ And, no, that pain in my chest was _not_ my heart being stomped on.

"Wow. That's… that's pretty amazing."

He shrugged, like it was no big deal. "Yeah. We're apart a lot, though, so that kinda sucks."

"Huh," was my intelligent answer, and before I could say anything, Percy butted back in.

"You know, your self-description was pretty lacking. Favorite color? Favorite place? Favorite person? No, wait, I can guess. It's me, isn't it?"

I laughed. "You wish." I hoped he did. "My favorite color is…" I examined the shade his eyes. "Sea green. I'm really fond of New York City. Maybe you could show me around."

He nodded, grinning. "That would be awesome." He leaned forward on his elbows, his black hair falling into his eyes, which were intense and shining. "So spill. How many times have you, Annabeth Chase, been arrested?"

I spluttered. "_What?_ None! You're… that's crazy!"

He laughed. "I'll take that to mean at _least_ five. I bet I can beat you, though. Seven."

I stared at him. Percy was… Percy was _not_ the kind of guy you'd think would ever go to jail. He was too nice. Too carefree.

"What for?"

"Six times, it was a wrong-place/wrong-time kind of situation. I kind of have this tendency to be around things while they're exploding."

I burst out laughing. I just couldn't help it – that was just such a _Percy_ thing to say.

"And the other time?"

He blushed, but grinned. "Public indecency."

I stared at him. He stared back at me. Finally, he winked at me, and we both cracked up.

"To be honest, I don't the arresting officer minded too much. She let me off pretty easy," he breathed out, wiping at his eyes, which made me go into another fit of giggles.

When the remnants of our laughter had finally subsided, he got a serious look in his eyes again. "Honestly, though. I've just confessed my deepest darkest shames to you – it's your turn. How many times have you been arrested?"

I frowned at him. "Why _how many times?_ Why not just _have you ever?_"

He grinned at me. "You can't be as much as a goody-goody as you seem, or Rachel would never be friends with you. You have to have _some_ sort of rebellious streak."

I had to agree with him there. I sighed as I gave in. "Fine. Once."

He cheered victoriously, fist pumping the air, then scrunched up his eyebrows. "Once? Just once? Are you sure? Are you _holding out on me?_ Dishonesty is a sin, Annabeth."

I smirked. "Sorry to burst your bubble, Percy, but just once. I'm virtually a saint."

He sunk back into his seat in defeat. "Okay, fine. Just once. So what for? Intense annoyingness? Mouthing off to a police officer? Over know-it-all-ness?"

"Vandalizing public property."

His eyes lit up. "I can _so_ imagine you in a black hoodie with a can of spray paint."

I reached over the table to punch him in the arm. "No, you idiot. I broke a window. On _accident._ I spent the night in a tiny holding cell and I had to do twelve hours of community service."

He sighed. "That's got to be the most boring story I've ever heard."

I shrugged. "Sorry I'm not as much as a criminal as you'd like. What about Rachel? What's her record?"

"Oh, at least twenty. She goes to all these protests and does a bunch of loitering and _real_ vandalizing. And she goes to stores and forgets to pay for things."

I think I forgot to mention that Rachel was _really_ rich, and therefore tended to think the world was hers and she could take whatever she wanted.

"The _real_ winner, though, is my mom. You should have seen her back in her glory days…"

Percy blathered on about some undoubtedly over exaggerated story about his mom and a car chase and I watch the curve of his jaw as he spoke. We talked some more, me mainly about schoolwork and him about _everything,_ and then we went for a walk on the Great Lawn and he brought me to his favorite cupcake store in all of Manhattan before we started to head home.

"Hey," I said as we neared the apartment, "I actually had a pretty great time."

He grinned at me. "I knew I'd win you over."

"Huh?"

He scratched at the back of his head. "Well, it kinda seemed like you'd been avoiding me lately. You know, making a point of not hanging out with me and all. Sorry I moved in on such short notice and stuff, but I think you're really cool and I had an awesome afternoon with you so I think it would be great if we could be friends."

His eyes were so big and friendly, like he had no idea how simultaneously guilty and wonderful I felt due to his last few sentences, and my heart was either melting or doing jumping jacks or both.

"I'd love to be your friend."

"Really?" he said, his whole face lighting up.

"Of course, seaweed brain."

He laughed. "Seaweed Brain. I like that. It builds on my love of the ocean."

I rolled my eyes. "Actually, it's because your head is full of kelp."

"Hey!" he cried out, indignant, and chased me up the stairs.

… … …

"So," Rachel said in a voice that made it clear she was trying a little too hard to be casual, "you and Percy seem to be getting close."

My heart started pounding a little faster in my chest. I did _not_ like where this was going. "Sure, I guess."

The truth was, after two months of Percy living with us, I was starting to really enjoy his presence. Even worse, when he was gone, I _craved_ it. I didn't just have a silly crush on Percy because he was cute anymore – I really, really liked him as a person. He'd had a hard past – he was dirt poor, always getting kicked out of school, had a half-abusive stepfather, but he was still so _good._ He hadn't let any of his past affect him. He only dwelled on the good parts. I was still bitter and angry over my mom leaving me when I was little and my father never really caring. Percy, though… Percy was amazing.

Percy was everything I'd ever wanted. Despite how much he annoyed me, and no matter how much he got on my nerves, I couldn't imagine my life without him anymore.

He was the best part of my day.

"Has he… has he said anything to you?"

Huh. Not exactly how I'd pictured this conversation going. "About what?"

"About… us. Me and him, I mean. As a couple."

Oh. "Um, no, not really. Just that you two have been together for ages."

"Right," Rachel said, looking a little nervous. "Right."

I sat down on the couch next to her, concerned. I may have hated Rachel a little bit for stealing the only person I'd ever really _really_ wanted, but she was still my best friend. "You okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. It's just… I…"

"Come on. You can talk to me."

She sighed, eyeing the door. Percy was at his afternoon class – he wouldn't be back for a while. "It's… nothing."

"Rachel."

"Okay, it's…" She ran a hand through her red curls. "Percy and I… we were best friends way before we got together. You know? We'd always been there for each other, and everyone kind of just assumed that we'd end up together one day, because it looked perfect on paper. But…" she tugged on a bit of hair, "but we've never really been a great couple. I just… it's never been like it's supposed to be. Like in books and movies and stuff. Like, I try too hard to make it work, and he tries too hard to have feelings for me that I don't think he really has. I practically had to beg him to move in here, because I thought it would make us closer, but…"

"But what?"

She hesitated. "I… ever since he starting living with us, he's been kinda more distant towards me. Still Percy, but less… _Percy._" She exhaled lately. "It's like we're just best friends again."

"And…?"

"And… the thing is, I think I like it better that way. I think," she looked like she might cry, "I think I might want to break up with him."

I honestly had no idea what to feel. Rachel wanted to break up with Percy. Percy was distant towards Rachel. I… on one hand, I was devastated, because Rachel looked _so_ sad and if their relationship wasn't working out it seemed impossible that any relationship in the entire world could work out and they'd been together for _four years_ and my stomach hurt.

On the other hand, for completely selfish, bitchy, terrible reasons, I was pleased, which just made me want to throw up even more. I was _disgusting._

Rachel seemed to think my look of repulsion was directed towards her, because she started to sob. "I know, I _know_, I'm awful, I'm a horrible person, I don't deserve him anyway. Percy is wonderful and sweet and nice and _perfect_ but he… he's not perfect for _me_. We don't _fit._ We're not _right._ Does that… does that make _any_ sense?"

I put a comforting arm around her shoulder and nodded slowly. "Yeah, Rachel. It does."

And… it did.

It's like when you're doing a puzzle and all the pieces are around the same shape, so if you push one hard enough into a place it doesn't belong it will fit anyway. But it won't align right with the rest of the picture, and it will be squished and uncomfortable and ugly and then there will be another piece, the one that really belongs there, that's put into a place that doesn't belong either.

That was Rachel and Percy. And… maybe, just maybe, I was that piece that had been unable to fill the spot it belonged in because it was filled by someone that shouldn't be there.

Percy and I were opposites. I was inverted in the places he stuck out, and that was why we fit perfectly.

I was aware of how horrid I was, especially with Rachel bawling in my arms as she made big steps in realizing her relationship wasn't working, but my thoughts couldn't be changed. I couldn't do anything about them, and the more I tried to block them out the more I ended up thinking about them.

I couldn't help it. I put my head down on Rachel's and I cried, too.

… … …

"Hey," I said to Percy as he walked through the door. Rachel was in her and Percy's bedroom, taking a nap as I made scrambled eggs.

"Hey," Percy said, looking cheerful, which just made my stomach turn. "You forgot the blue food coloring, not-so wise girl."

I gave him a tight smile as I reached into the cabinet and pulled out one of the many bottles we had of the stuff. That was something that I loved about living with Percy – he made the house feel more like a home. Blue food coloring in the pantry, scuff marks on the walls, moonlace flowers growing on the window sill – he'd somehow come right in and made everything all homey and _Percy_.

His smile faded a little bit. "Annabeth? Are you okay?"

"Yup," I said, even though my voice came out all choked and strangled. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"Well," he said gently, placing a hand on my shoulder and taking the frying pan away from me, "for one thing, you didn't even throw a fit about eating blue food."

I nodded absently. Rachel was going to break up with Percy when she woke up, and here he was acting all normal and happy and nice. It made me feel sick. The world wasn't _fair._

"Hey," he said, snapping me out of my trance. "Are you feeling alright? Do you need to lie down? Here, let me –"

He reached out to touch my forehead. His hands were warm and callused and soft, and it made me want to cry.

"I'm fine," I said weakly, my voice stained with tears. Percy's eyes were concerned and tender.

"Why don't you go sit down?" he suggested caringly. "I'll finish up dinner."

"Mmmkay," I said, too tired to argue, and slumped down onto the left side of the couch. I placed a pillow on my lap and absently wished the sofa could just eat me up and make everything else go away.

I considered leaving the apartment, running away so that the inevitable fight between my two best friends could be avoided by myself. But… I couldn't. I had to be there. For Rachel. For Percy. For the both of them.

"So where's Rachel?" Percy asked, placing a plate of blue scrambled eggs on the coffee table in front of me. The smell made me nauseas. There was no way I could eat anything.

"She's napping," I muttered poking my food around with a fork. Percy settled down next to me on the couch.

"That's… good," he said slowly, carefully, like he was afraid if he spoke wrong I'd start crying. Which I might.

I wasn't even sure why I felt so bad about this. I _wanted_ them to break up, badly. I'd been silently hoping and praying for it for the last two months. Maybe that was why I felt like shit. I'd _asked_ for this. I'd _asked_ for the two people the closest to me in the world to be miserable. I'd _craved_ it. I'd made this happen.

I was a monster.

"Annabeth," Percy said gently, resting a hand on my wrist. "Tell me what's wrong."

I wanted to tell him. I really did. I wanted to get it over with, let him know now, fast and quick, like ripping off a bandaid. But… I couldn't. It couldn't be me. Rachel had to do it.

"I can't," I said quietly, and Percy, beautiful, understanding creature that he was, just nodded.

"How can I make you feel better?" he asked bluntly, like there was nothing more important.

I laughed brokenly. _I_ was the one that needed to make _him_ feel better, even if he didn't know it yet. Everything was my fault, and he was still trying to help me.

He was_ so_ good.

"Nothing," I murmured.

"Annabeth –"

"No, there's definitely nothing you can do."

He was silent for a moment, and then asked, "Is this about your family?"

As far as he knew, I was on bad terms with both my parents as well as my stepmother, and I couldn't even remember either one of my brother's birthdays, so I guess it was a reasonable assumption to make.

I was about to answer _no,_ but then I thought about how Rachel comforted me when I got a B in Abnormal Psychology and how Percy insisted on inserting at least ten minutes of fun into every day and how they were both so eager to hear about my classes every evening while we ate dinner.

"Yeah," I whispered. "It's kind of about my family."

Percy pulled me into a hug, and I clutched at his firm back as he held me. Even now, as he patted down my hair and tried to soothe me, I was thinking about how solid his chest was and how nice he smelled, like salt and pine trees, and how _warm_ his body was, and that was what sent the tears over the edge.

I was the worst friend in the entire universe.

And then suddenly Percy was holding my face in his hands and _looking_ at me. He really, truly looked at me. His eyes, serious for once, not a trace of their usual glint of mischief, searched mine for… _something._ He found it, I think, because the expression on his face changed fractionally and I felt something like a shiver run up my spine, only stronger, and I knew something big was about to happen.

And then it did, and he kissed me.

Despite my best efforts, I'd been imagining this moment since the very first day I'd met him. Every single night, I'd dream about what it would feel like to just lean into him and close the couple inches that always seemed to be between us. I'd had a hundred different fantasies involving a hundred different situations with a hundred different outcomes.

None of them could have prepared me for this, where Percy was still with Rachel but was kissing me and Rachel was planning to break up with him and his lips on mine was the most amazing feeling in the entire world.

When I'd first met him, and he'd shaken my hand, I'd felt something akin to electricity. That was… _nothing_ compared to what I was feeling now.

I'd kissed before. One boy, sure, but I'd really liked him and I'd thought that kissing him was _amazing._ This… this was… _otherworldly._

Percy's lips were warm and soft and gentle, pressing but unassuming and nervous and innocent. I wasn't even sure how I could _tell_ he was all these things, but kissing him was like soaking in his emotions and thoughts and feelings.

I finally realized I was just sitting there like a stiff board, and so I reached up to wind my fingers into his dark, messy hair, which was like silk under my fingers as I pulled him even closer. He let his hands rest at the small of my back, holding me, and I swore that I'd never felt anything so perfect and safe and _right_ in my entire life.

I was the missing puzzle piece. And I'd found my place.

And then I realized where that place was, with Percy, on the couch that I'd sat on with Rachel mere hours before as she cried over her relationship woes with this very person. I was betraying her trust, I was breaking my morals, and I was taking advantage of this entire situation.

It didn't matter how right this felt. Here, in this moment, it was wrong.

So I pulled away and got up from the couch, trying to ignore the tears streaming down my face, and said, "You need to talk to Rachel."

He stared at me, his face flushed, his hair even more ruffled than usual, his breath heavy. There was nothing in the world I wanted more than to go right back into his arms and forget logic and reason and sanity. Percy made me forget those things.

He gave me this… this look, like he was trying to read what I was thinking, and when he spoke his voice was soft. "I love Rachel," he said slowly, like he was testing how the words felt in his mouth. "I do. But not… not like I should. Not like I love you."

It was all I'd ever wanted to hear. Percy and Rachel could break up on good terms, stay friends, and Percy and I could get married and have kids and live a long and rich and fulfilling life.

"You need to talk to Rachel," I said again, louder this time, clenching up my fists.

"Annabeth," he pressed, standing up and walking towards me. "You –"

"_You need to talk to Rachel,_" I repeated once more, my face hot with anger. Yeah. That's right. I was _angry_. I'd buried my feelings, I'd supported a relationship that made me miserable, I'd kept my distance, I'd been a loyal friend, and here was Percy telling me that –

All this was going to do was hurt people. It would hurt Rachel, it would hurt Percy, and it would hurt _me._

I didn't want to get hurt anymore.

There. I said it. My mom hurt me when she left. My dad hurt me when he stopped caring. My stepmother hurt me when she decided I wasn't a real member of her perfect family. Luke hurt me when he told me he loved me and left once he got bored.

I knew Percy would never hurt me, intentionally. But he would. He would hurt me. He already had.

And I was sick of it.

I'd come all the way from California, across the entire United States, to New York City, just to get away from all the hurt, and here it was again.

"I have to go," I announced, and grabbed my jacket from the coat rack before shutting the door to the apartment firmly behind me.

… … …

Percy was moving out.

When I got home, Rachel was sitting on the couch in her bathrobe, her eyes red-rimmed as she shoveled chocolate ice cream into her mouth. I noted that she was watching _The Notebook_, and instantly knew that her and Percy's conversation hadn't gone well.

"Hey," I said quietly, and the second she looked at me it was obvious that Percy had told her about the kiss that had happened between the two of us. Of course he had. I should have known, because Percy didn't keep secrets and didn't tell lies, but it surprised me anyway.

One of the most intimate, private moments of my life, and he'd told her about it.

"Hey." She looked upset, of course, but not mad. Not mad at me, and not mad in general. I wasn't really expecting that. I was expecting… anger.

"I…" I trailed off, swallowing. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay," she said, and she looked like she meant it. She even offered me a smile, and it was real. "This was a long time coming, Annabeth. You just… helped."

That made my stomach turn. "I feel like crap," I offered, sitting down next to her and taking a generous scoop of ice cream from the carton.

She laughed. "Me, too. But also good. You know?"

I thought of everything that had happened throughout the day, and nodded slowly. "Yeah. I know."

We sat in silence for a moment before Rachel said, "Percy left."

"Oh?" My heart felt like lead.

"Yeah. He packed up a bag full of clothes and blue food coloring and got out of here. He's staying with his friend Nico for a while. He was pretty down."

"Right," I managed passed the lump in my throat.

"I don't think it's just because we broke up."

"Uh-huh."

Rachel gave me this look. Her green eyes were piercing and knowledgeable. "You gonna tell him?"

"Tell… who… what?"

"Percy. That you love him. Duh."

I gaped at her like a fish. My ADHD-riddled mind absently noted that me looking like a fish would probably make Percy ten times more attracted to me.

"Annabeth, I'm not blind. You and Percy are my best friends. You… I can read the both of you. And you two_ work_. Like me and him didn't."

I took a moment to soak that in, and she graciously gave me the time to do so.

"I don't think," I said slowly, "that it would be a good idea."

"Why not?"

"You know why." And she did. Her and Percy's friendship would be ruined, her and my friendship would be ruined, and if things didn't work out, me and Percy's friendship would be ruined.

"Right," she said and then shook her head, "You know what? No. You guys _belong_ together. I've known Percy since we were eight, and I've been living with you for a year now, and nothing's ever going to come between any of us. We're not just _friends_ anymore, Annabeth. We're _family_. And nothing can come between family. They're there no matter what."

I looked at her, and I realized that despite her quirks and homicidal tendencies, Rachel just might have been the smartest person I knew. Even smarter than me.

But because I couldn't deal with emotional situations, I said, "I guess that explains why most of the time I want to chuck the both of you off a cliff. Familial relations and all."

She rolled her eyes at me, and I hit her with a pillow, and that was when I realized that everything was going to be alright.

… … …

I lasted two whole weeks before I cracked and begged Rachel for Nico's address, seeing as Percy was currently residing in his apartment. She had the nerve to smirk at me, even though she _knew_ how hard it had been for me to suck up my pride and ask her.

"Why don't you just call him?" she questioned as she tapped her paintbrush against her cheek, contemplating the Greek legend she was drawing (the Minotaur?). I decided against telling her that she was getting brown paint all over her skin. She'd probably try to paint the entire picture with her nose or something, taking the term _face painting_ to a whole new level.

"This needs to be face to face," I said simply, and she took hold of my wrist and wrote the address down in paint.

"Gee, thanks," I said flatly, but Rachel had already turned back to her masterpiece.

… … …

I stalled on my way to Nico's apartment, stopping for coffee and critiquing buildings that I totally could have done a better job on if I'd been around when they'd been built. I contemplated going home for a while (it _had_ only been two weeks, not a lot of time for someone to get over a four-year relationship), but I figured putting it off would only make the rift between Percy and I stronger and there was no use in delaying the inevitable, anyway.

And, honestly, I missed him. This was the longest I'd been away from him since he'd moved in, and his absence was painfully noticeable.

A guy in a black shirt with hazel eyes answered to door. "Nico?" I guessed.

He sighed heavily. "Annabeth?"

I nodded.

"Percy _always_ gets the hot chicks," he muttered as he turned around and called out for his friend.

I blushed and shoved my hands in my pockets, fidgeting nervously in the doorway. Eventually, Percy emerged, his hair looking like he'd stuck a fork in a light socket. He was wearing a white shirt that said _Salt Life_ on it, ratty jeans, and a small smile: everything about him was just so familiar that I felt better almost instantly.

"Hey," I said, my nerves calmed but just barely.

"Hey," responded, just like he always did, and I held up my hand before he could say anything else.

"I've only known you for two months," I said quickly, wanting to get over the emotional speech part as fast as humanly possible, but also wanting my feelings clear and heard and out in the open.

"Oka–"

I cut him off. "Remember that conversation we had about you not interrupting me?"

He nodded sheepishly, which I took as a sign to continue.

"You are stupid, stubborn, arrogant, immature, reckless, and obtuse. Your sense of humor is terrible and everything you do is ridiculous. You almost _never_ take things seriously. We're nothing alike."

Percy looked at me like he was waiting for more. I was tempted to turn around right then and leave, just to teach him a lesson, but I decided that getting the better of him wasn't worth it. Not even sort of.

"I've only known you for two months," I said again, and he nodded. "I'm nineteen years old. I… I don't know enough about the world to draw a proper conclusion. There's not enough evidence."

He grinned at me. "Think you could form a hypothesis?"

"I'm hopelessly in love with you," I announced. "I might have to run a few tests and conduct a few experiments and gather a few facts, but I think I already know what the outcome's going to be."

He leaned forward, closer to me, close enough to count his eyelashes. "I got a C+ in science, you know."

"Lucky for you, I got an A," I breathed, and when he kissed me I was pretty sure my theory had been proven accurate already.

**my longest oneshot ever! apologies for any and all mistakes**


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